How to build a multicultural library

"Don't wait for black history month to recommend a book about african american culture, or go looking native americans at thanksgiving. offer child balanced reading that incorporates books other cultures all year round."

—Michelle Y. Green

In the November, 2000 issue of NEA Today, Joseph Bruchac, Abenaki storyteller, publisher, and children's book author, shared his thoughts on enriching your bookshelf with multicultural works. The following is reprinted with permission from NEA Today. Please visit NEA Today Online, the cyber-edition of the National Education Association's flagship publication.

Why the need for multicultural literature?

Children need every kind of role model that is appropriately available. Our children come from an incredibly wide range of backgrounds and have many different ways of experiencing the world. We need to read and experience, with authenticity, things that come from their point of view to be a fully rounded human being.

What do you mean by 'authenticity'?

Sometimes books are written by people who imagine a world they've never lived. As a result, we get books full of factual errors, stereotyping, and pictures that are not helpful to anyone.

How can you discern a book's cultural authenticity?

Look at the sources cited and the acknowledgements made by the author. It's important to get a clear and detailed citation - if that's missing, be suspicious.

If you come across a story that is described generically as "an African story," for example, instead of being tied to a specific tribe or region, you should question its authenticity.

Unfortunately, even today, we see books with pictures of other cultures that are the equivalent of Italians wearing kilts and speaking with German accents.

How can educators develop a multicultural library or reading list?

Make a list of the finer writers out there, and make it a class project to write and ask for their recommendations. Contact publishers who have catalogs and a variety of resources, such as Lee and Low Books.

I strongly recommend the Multicultural Review as a source for reviews and interesting articles. And it's incumbent upon librarians to read regularly such publications as the Small Press Reivew which looks at the diversity of publications out there. *****

For more: Visit Joseph Bruchac's web site.

Send comments to  readacross@nea.org